We are often asked by our customers how the transition has been going – and what has changed at SEC as a result.

Spencer Etzel, founder of the SEC Group, shares some of his thoughts below about the new team, the Maximizer Tent System, and the future of the company.

Priority #1 – Provide the Same Great Service, Technical Expertise & Responsiveness

“Our highest priority through this transition was making sure that our customers knew we were going to provide the same great service, technical expertise, and responsiveness that they have always come to expect from the SEC Group, despite the many behind-the-scenes activities that always occur during a change like this” says Etzel.

The Same Great Team of Industry Experts

“With Rainier, we still have the same great SEC team of industry experts – with over 100 years of combined experience,” Etzel continued, “and we also have all the additional resources of the Rainier organization layered on top of that.

The level of experience and capabilities we can now offer to the tenting industry is truly unmatched.”

The Maximizer Tent System Gets Even Better

Many of our customers aren’t aware that the SEC Group and Rainier Industries partnered for years on the most demanding and complex custom tenting work.

“We always leveraged Rainier’s state of the art production capabilities for anything that required graphics, fabric that had a special shape, or projects that demanded extremely high quality standards,” says Etzel.

“The greatest opportunity that the merger with Rainier afforded us was the ability to update the product line like never before.”

Factory Direct Design, Engineering & Sales

“We now have in-house manufacturing capability, which allows me, as the original designer of Maximizer Tent System, to quickly add new features & capabilities to the system,” continues Spencer – “and to directly improve production and quality standards.”

Customizable and Continuously Improving Tent Systems

“I truly enjoy working directly with our rental customers to talk about how we can customize and improve the Maximizer Tent System to meet unique needs. And now we can move on those ideas faster than ever.

It’s already the most flexible system in the market, but the next good idea always comes from our customer base and the many challenges they face.”

More Inventory in Multiple Locations

One of the most exciting aspects of being part of the Rainier team is the benefits of being part of a larger company.

We have more inventory, more purchasing power – and an east coast facility that will soon be stocking tenting inventory.

Partnering With Our Customers

“Being a vendor to this industry is so much more than just selling products. It’s about understanding our customers\’ and industry’s challenges and helping customers to address those challenges in order to grow profitability,” says Spencer.

“That is the philosophy that I used to build the SEC Group – and it continues to be stronger than ever with Rainier.”

Combining The SEC Group’s technical & engineering expertise with Rainier’s state of the art manufacturing capabilities provides customers with more options and faster service.

To satisfy increasing demand for their tent products in the event rental business, Rainier Industries has completed the acquisition of The SEC Group in Wilsonville, Oregon.
“This is a great marriage of two of the tent industry’s leading players,” commented Rainier president, Scott Campbell. “Spencer and I have worked together for decades, so combining our strengths made perfect sense.”

“Rainier’s wide range of manufacturing capabilities allows us to greatly expand our products and services. The best tent product in the industry just got better!” said Spencer Etzel, Owner of The SEC Group.
Rainier will continue to manufacture product in Seattle, while The SEC Group remains in their Wilsonville, Oregon facility.

“We are really excited to add Spencer to our team,” states Campbell. “His technical knowledge is un-paralleled in the tent industry.”
Rainier plans to be shipping The SEC Group product from Seattle immediately.

Founded in 1896, Rainier Industries began providing tents and supplies to prospectors in the Alaskan Gold Rush. Today, it has evolved into a diverse manufacturer of a variety of products including yurts, tents, awning & screen systems, industrial fabric products as well as sports, retail and tradeshow graphics to regional, national and Fortune 500 companies.

The SEC Group has been designing, manufacturing and managing superior product lines for the tenting industry for more than three decades. Focusing on tent systems, tent liners, tools and accessories that set the standard for innovation, ease of use and quality, it has become the provider of choice for all tent renters and users that aim to maximize value of their tenting investment.